Parents' Guide to The Fall of the House of Usher

TV Netflix Drama 2023
The Fall of the House of Usher TV show poster: A close-up photo of an hourglass is pictured. The hourglass is full of red sand which is draining from the top to the bottom. A two-story house is pictured half-buried in the sand in the top part of the hourglass.

Common Sense Media Review

Jenny Nixon By Jenny Nixon , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 17+

Modernized Poe-inspired horror series is addictive but gory.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 17+?

Any Positive Content?

  • A white woman with bleached platinum hair hold a gloved hand to her chin in shock
    1:04
  • The Fall of the House of Usher TV show screenshot 1: A man with grey hair and a mustache sits in church pews, looking over his shoulder with a surprised expression on his face.
  • The Fall of the House of Usher TV show screenshot 2: A woman with long brown hair stands in a kitchen facing a woman with a shaved head, who is touching the other woman's face. She is looking into her eyes with a reassuring expression on her face.
  • The Fall of the House of Usher TV show screenshot 3: Two men in suits sit in front of a third man's desk—the third man is seen from behind—with attentive looks on their faces.
  • The Fall of the House of Usher TV show screenshot 4: A woman with wavy blonde hair stands in a dimly-lit nightclub. She is pictured from the waist up and is wearing black lingerie, a red-and-gold hooded cape, and a skull-shaped mask.
  • The Fall of the House of Usher TV show screenshot 5: A group of five tense-looking men and women sit at a wine glass-strewn table in a fancy-looking dining room. A man in a suit, wearing small wire-rimmed glasses, stands to the side with his hands clasped.

Parent and Kid Reviews

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age 18+

Based on 3 parent reviews

 

 

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age 15+

Based on 3 kid reviews

 

 

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What's the Story?

THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER is an eight-episode horror series loosely based on the Edgar Allan Poe story of the same name, from writer-director Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, The Midnight Club). As the series begins, we meet mega-rich pharmaceutical magnate Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood, The Resident) at the end of his long and luxurious life. Usher, who has just buried the last of his six adult children, sits by the fireplace with his former nemesis, prosecutor C. Auguste Dupin (Carl Lumbly, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) and recounts the wild and winding tale of how he and his calculating twin sister Madeleine (Mary McDonnell, Battlestar Galactica) accumulated their massive wealth and how their actions directly contributed to his descendants' gruesome, premature deaths. As each episode progresses, we learn more about Roderick's connection to the mysterious, shape-shifting woman (Carla Gugino, Gerald's Game) who has been shadowing his visions as she doles out ghastly punishments to his progeny.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 3 ):
Kids say ( 3 ):

Flanagan's past work has fused deeply emotional storytelling with supernatural horror, often dealing with psychological wounds and trauma; this is different, though equally accomplished and addicting. Don't expect the lyrical eeriness of earlier series like The Haunting of Bly Manor, as The Fall of the House of Usher could better be compared to a Giallo -- the style of blood-soaked horror-thriller made popular in Italian cinema of the 1960s and '70s. The way the series weaves in references to various works by Poe is inspired, and there are cheeky nods to Flanagan's past works here too (keep an eye out in the basement scenes and you may spot the mirror from Oculus).

Gugino does a killer job -- quite literally -- as the enigmatic Verna, who seems as fed up with the materialistic and amoral Usher clan as viewers are. The Ushers are clearly inspired by the Sackler family, the real-life pharma billionaires criticized for their role in exacerbating America's massive opioid crisis. These aren't people we particularly sympathize with, and the creative and grisly set pieces during which each member meets their end have an air of dark wit and karmic comeuppance to them -- think Succession meets Saw. The series occasionally stumbles when it overdoes the social commentary monologues instead of letting the story speak for itself, but overall it's a uniquely enjoyable tale of terror, just so long as you have a strong stomach.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the level of blood and gore in The Fall of the House of Usher. Did these scenes seem intended to make you scared, grossed out, or both? Would the series have been as effective with less violence?

  • Talk about the relationships between the Usher kids and their father. How does wealth affect how they treat one another?

  • Roderick and Madeleine Usher have a very close relationship. How do you think the events of their childhood influenced decisions and bargains they made later in life? Does it seem like these decisions were worth it?

TV Details

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The Fall of the House of Usher TV show poster: A close-up photo of an hourglass is pictured. The hourglass is full of red sand which is draining from the top to the bottom. A two-story house is pictured half-buried in the sand in the top part of the hourglass.

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